


Restless

by mandaree1



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Awkward Family Dinners, Bonding over leadership issues, Cloud Screaming, Connie being awesome, Continuous questioning of Lars' fashion sense, Cookies, Drabble Collection, Family Bonding, Fluff, Fluorite can't fit inside most buildings rip her, Gen, Group Hugs, Guilt, Hug Times, Hugs, Island adventure, Making Friends, Movie Nights, Ocean Dunking, Paddie gets a bow and arrow, Paperwork, Picnics, Seashell necklaces, Shopping, Silly Fights, Stomachaches, Strawberry ice cream, Super glue, Technically Stealing, The Pink Floofs Meet, Warp Lessons, hotdogs, lots of hugs, mozzarella sticks, punching walls
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-10
Updated: 2019-02-01
Packaged: 2019-03-03 04:37:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 18,379
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13333647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mandaree1/pseuds/mandaree1
Summary: Captain Lars faces his hardest challenge yet; getting re-accustomed to Earth.





	1. Landing

Lars doesn't know how long it's been since he slept last. He hasn't really paid any attention to it. There's been too much on his to-do list to think about sleep; building the Star Skipper (rest in pieces), dodging Emerald, telling stories, pacing, you know how it gets when you fly in a stolen ship cross-galaxy. It was telling on him now, in the bags sagging under his eyelids, but now it's less adrenaline keeping him going and more excitement. Not the good kind. The sour kind that made him feel like he was having a heart attack.

He took in a deep breath, then let it out. Right, right. Straight face. Stiff upper lip. All that junk. Rhodonite had eyes like a hawk. No need to make her get all worried about landing.

"Take your time, guys," he says finally, in relation to the Rutiles. "Sand isn't a very solid substance. It's gonna be wobbly."

The right one gives him a thumbs up. "Touchdown in ten minutes, Captain."

"Awesome."

Padparadscha sat up straight. "We're nearing the Earth!"

"Thanks, Paddie."

Lars shifted in his chair, feeling his cape tug at the front of his throat. It's a sensation he's gotten used to. He tightens and loosens his fingers, wondering what he wants to do first. Swim? Jump on the trampoline? Hug everybody? There's so many things, but he knows, realistically, that it'll probably include a lot of crying. He imagines they'll all blubber- both he and the rest of the Off Colors. (Is it selfish to hope someone does? To have feasible proof that he  _matters_  on Earth, that people noticed him missing from the boardwalk? Probably. Lars has always been pretty good at being selfish.)

Fluorite is not a quiet Gem, and they all hear her slow, methodical steps as she goes to poke her head out from the engine room. Lars has already turned his head in her direction. She's smiling, all eyes wide and alert. "All... set," she reports, then sighs. "I hope... the landing... will be smooth."

Rhodonite let out an agonized groan, chin on her hands. The fusion stared unblinkingly at her settings and controls. "Don't  _remind_  me."

"It'll be fine," Lars reassures them both- reassures himself, too. "We've got the best pilots in the galaxy."

They all go silent. Fluorite comes around and wraps around his chair, watching and waiting. Lars drums his fingers on the armrest; then, catching the look he got, stopped. Right. Gotta let them focus. He hopes they don't crash into the ocean.

The Sun Incinerator is a luxury space craft. At least, that's what Lars has been told. All Homeworld ships come across as plain to him. They know how to make 'em fancy on Earth. Stickers and paint. Classy. Regardless, the vehicle lowers smoothly, with hardly even a sound. The landing gear is deployed, and they coast to the ground with a thud, shifting a bit before settling, the ship at just the right angle to make him feel like he was leaning back.

Lars swallowed, the enormity of what just happened sinking in.

They were home.

No one dared move. The silence had grown brittle. The Rutiles clasped their hands together, trembling. A thin hand comfortingly rubbed a bigger hand as Rhodonite scanned the sands for enemies, finding them decently barren. A few crabs, but nothing that looked big and scary. Fluorite's top and middle sets of eyes darted to Lars, and he knew he was going to have to make the first step here. He always had to make the first step. It's why they made him Captain.

Padparadscha smiled. "We've landed."

They all breathed out in relief, the moment gone. Lars gave a shaky little laugh. "Okay, yeah, alright. This is sure a thing, huh? Welcome to Earth, guys. It doesn't get much better than this."

"Captain Lars?"

"Yeah, Ru?"

The Rutile hesitated, lips quirking. "Can we really just _go out there_? Whenever we want?" she asked. "Is that... really allowed?"

He nodded. The twins looked at each other and smiled.

"I can't believe we actually did it," Rhodonite whispered, face cradled between her four hands. "We're actually here."

"I'm... proud...of us." Fluorite announced.

"Me too," Lars hastened to add. He shifted onto his one elbow, more exhausted than he ever remembered being. But they did it. They got to Earth. "Good going, everybody. We did good. Real good."

A gentle tapping on the landing gear has all of them tense and ready for battle. Lars stands up, sleepiness forgotten. "Rhodonite, put it on the main screen."

She nods, flicking her picture up so they all can see it. Three shapes are huddled outside the Sun Incinerator.

Lars let out a bedraggled breath. "Oh, thank goodness. It's just Steven's moms."

"Those are  _Gems_ ," Rhodonite squeaks.

"I know. But they aren't any threat to us." Lars bit his lip. "At least, I don't think so. I  _did_  once spill coffee on Garnet."

"Should we hide?"

"No? I don't see why, anyway."

"Gems are coming to visit us!"

"Thank you, Padparadscha." He straightened his shirt out with a grimace. "Twins, lower the dock. I'll handle this."

They did with a small frown. The smell of salty sea air washed over them, hitting Lars with such a heavy dose of nostalgia he wanted to tear up. The sound of the sea, the screech of seagulls, the warm gritty sand... He shook himself. Lars didn't have the time to cry. Not in front of Steven's weird mothers, and certainly not in front of his crew. His mom and dad were still open for debate.

Lars did an awkward half-jog down the open dock, praying he didn't slip and make an idiot of himself. He didn't know them all too well- Amethyst came in for donuts, and Garnet would come by here and there, but that was about it. He didn't think they really had a lot of friends. Still. If he messed up now, _he_  would remember it, and it would haunt him for ages.

"Your name is Lars, right?" Pearl says, putting a hand to her chin. The only reason Lars knows her name is because she fights off monsters. He isn't even sure they've met before. Probably not. "Steven's been talking about you."

"Oh?" he prompted. "Only good things, I hope."

"Dude," Amethyst pipes up, torn between laughter and scorn. Now, Amethyst? He  _knows_  her. Like a thorn in the foot, even. "What are you wearing?"

Lars' face turned a brighter shade a pink. "Well,  _you_  try sneaking into Homeworld without a cape sometime. It's harder than you'd think."

"He ain't wrong." Garnet adjusted her shades. "Welcome back."

He didn't know what to make of that. He opened his mouth to ask her if she was serious- it was completely in his right to know if he was being made fun of by aliens, dangit- but his question was hindered by what can best be described as a screech.

"LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!"

Lars winced. Steven. Right. His ears were bleeding, he was sure of it. Just behind him he could hear Fluorite saying the boy's name, just as long and drawn out as Steven was saying his. The fusion had proven to be rather affectionate towards him.

Steven is a gentle kid, usually, but he's not gentle in how he tackles Lars in a hug, sending his butt to the harsh floor of the dock. He just kinda goes with it, knowing it's basically useless to avoid him. He's faster than he looks. And hugs are nice. Lars has missed hugs.

Pearl's pointy nose wrinkles. "Steven, please, the sand."

"Aw, let 'em hug, P."

"They can hug on the porch. It'd probably be more comfortable for both of them if they did."

"I'm  _so_  glad you're here," Steven whispers into his shirt. A shirt that probably smells terrible, now that Lars thought about it. Could be worse, though. Could be the one he died in.

Lars wraps his arms around Steven and gives him a good squeeze. "Me too, buddy. Me too."


	2. Lars Does Paperwork

Lars, as it happens, is not good at being poked and prodded. But a guy's gotta do what a guy's gotta do, and he's not really willing to get on the bad side of Steven's moms. They're  _kind of_  scary. Also, Steven refuses to leave his side. Steven's _kind of_  buffer than him. Lars can front all he wants, but there's no way Steven couldn't lay him out flat if he really needed to. He's still debating on whether or not any ribs have cracked from that hug.

After the initial examination and interview, they seem to decide he and his friends are alright, and give the thumbs up to stay on the beach. Lars trodded back over to the Sun Incinerator, mind filling up with more and more things he needed to accomplish in the next little while. He should probably call his parents, for starters. And his boss. Did he still have a job at the Big Donut? Somehow, he figured he did. They were  _really_  bad about hiring and firing employees. He sighed, shoulders falling low.  _Great._

And then there was Sadie. How was he even going to go about Sadie, anyway? Steven had told him she was in a band now, and hanging out with the cool kids. The ones he specifically didn't know how to talk to. Probably surrounded by them 24/7. Sure, Lars was a lot cooler now than he was before- he figured stealing a ship bumped him up more than a few notches on that particular ladder- but his old social status dulled that a bit. They didn't know about his pirate life. Should he even be  _talking_  about his pirate life? He really didn't want to end up in prison because of his pirate life.

He rubbed his temples, taking in a deep breath. Wow, did Lars need a nap. A nap took priority, right? He couldn't make all these heartfelt reunions happen if he was barely able to string a sentence together. These things need pizzazz.

The dock is still sitting wide open, but none of the Off Colors have left the ship since he left; or, if they have, they've returned before he did. Rhodonite was staring at her control panel, checking the systems, only to jump up at his approaching footsteps. "Oooh, thank goodness, Captain Lars! I thought they'd taken you captive!"

"Not captive," he grunted, gesturing for the twins to close the dock behind him. "Just tired. I think I'mma sleep for a bit."

"But what about exploring?" the left Rutile argued, shaking her head in pent-up frustration. "We've got a whole world to see!"

Padparadscha stood up excitedly. "Lars is back!"

"You bet I am, Paddie," Lars replied, slipping into his chair. "And Lars is  _tired_."

Fluorite came around the bend to pat the Rutile on her particular shoulder. "We can explore... later. Captain Lars...  _needs_  his rest."

"Thanks, Fluorite," he mumbled, tucking the cape under his head, because he knows he would've gone had she pressed hard enough, and then there was a good chance he'd snap out of crankiness, and no one needs cranky Lars right now. These ships aren't exactly built for sleep, but he's not exactly in the frame of mind to care. He slips onto his side, away from the faces of his crew, and closes his eyes.

He's probably out a couple of hours, but it feels like mere seconds before there's another, more diligent tapping on the landing gear. Lars jolts awake, rolls out of his chair, and lets out an angry groan. "Steven, I swear to the stars I'll..." Give him a wet willy, probably. Or invite him to stay over. Make him sleep on the hard floor like every other space pirate. That'll teach him.

"We've got a human visitor!" Padparadscha is by his side, making him jump as she holds a hand out to help him to his feet.

"Thanks, Paddie," he says reflexively, mildly bemused. He walked over to the Rhodonite. "Alright, give me the deets."

For once, Rhodonite doesn't seem all that anxious. More confused than anything else. She points a thick finger at the screen, her other three arms shrugging. "It's a human... I think?"

Lars squints at the camera footage. Then he leans in, because he clearly must need glasses, that can't be what he thinks it is. As it turns out, his vision is fine. "Is that... Miss Nanefua?"

"What's a 'Miss Nanefua', Lars?" right Rutile asks.

"It's a human, Til. A human name, anyway."

"Is it a  _dangerous_  human?" Rhodonite presses, frowning.

"No, no. She's a nice old lady. One time, when Sadie and I were on a date, she gave us free mozzarella sticks." He scratched his chin. Lars, too caught up in his confusion, didn't realize the implications of calling their hangout a date. That would come later. "I have literally no idea what to make of this."

The tapping came again, harder this time. Rhodonite snatched his hands away from the screen, as if she could somehow bust through and bite at them. "Is she trying to attack?"

"Dunno," he admitted. "Twins, would you mind?"

"Gotcha, Cap'n."

Lars had plans to do as he did before- go down and greet her- but Nanefua Pizza is not a lady who waits, as evidenced by her determinedly walking up the lowered dock before he can even step outside, holding her hands out like she's waiting for a hug. "Welcome to Beach City!"

"Hi, Miss Nanefua."

"Please, Mr. Barriga. It's  _Mayor_  Nanefua."

His mind began to spin. Steven had  _not_  warned him about this. Thankfully, if there's one good thing to be said about his mouth, it's that it's good at picking up the slack. "Sorry, Mayor Nanefua."

"What's a mayor?" Rutile whispers to Rutile, made a quiet 'dunno' noise back.

Mayor Nanefua waved her hands a bit out of excitement, smiling ear to ear. "It's  _so_  nice to meet everyone. I am your local Nanefua."

"Does  _every_  human town have a Nanefua?" Rhodonite asked.

"They wish," Mayor Nanefua replied, to the fusion's bafflement. "Anywho, I just thought I'd come by to introduce myself, get to know everybody, inform you about the fact you need to register as Beach City citizens, maybe see about getting you a pizza-"

"Wait, wait, wait. Go back."

"Ooh, you're absolutely right, Mr. Barriga." She shook her head. "How rude of me. I never got your names!"

"Wait-" Lars tried again, but it was too late.

"I'm Rutile!" both of the Rutiles chirped, holding their hands out for a shake. The left one continued. "It's nice to meet you, new friend!"

Rhodonite held up her hand, sweating just a little. "Rhodonite. I think I'll just stay here, if it's all the same to you."

Fluorite closed the top set of her eyes as she watched over them. Lars liked to think that meant part of her was taking a nap. "I'm... Fluorite."

"Her name is Miss Nanefua," Padparadscha decided with a small smile. "And I'm Padpadaracha! Or Paddie! I dunno what a Paddie is, but that's what Captain Lars calls me, so I assume it's a super nice name."

"Right on the money, Paddie." Lars sent her finger guns. "Anyway, if we can go back for a sec. What's this about paperwork?"

Nanefua shrugged. "You didn't think you could land on the Earth and not fill out forms to enter into the local government for safekeeping, did you?"

"Kinda, yeah."

"Hahahahahaha!" She wiped away a tear. "Oh, sonny boy. You have much to learn about politics."

"I hate politics," he griped. "Can it at least wait until tomorrow, ma'am? We've kinda had a long trip."

"Hmmm... alright!" Mayor Nanefua snapped her fingers. "You come by the restaurant in the morning, and we'll get those papers out of the way. I'll even throw in a free side salad! But if you don't, I'll have to contact the police."

"What's that?" Rhodonite demanded, grabbing at her face. "Ooh, they're gonna shatter us, aren't they?"

"No, no, no." She waved the notion off. "They'll just arrest you."

Lars put a hand on the older woman's shoulder. "We'll be there, ma'am. Trust me. None of us are built to be jailbirds."

* * *

"Okay, so Gems have literally no last names, then?" Lars muttered to himself, scribbling onto a piece of paper. Many others of its ilk lay nearby in a neat pile. "Well, you're all going down as honorary Barrigas, then. My parents magically had multiple adult children overnight. Congrats to them. They'll be so proud."

"Can Paddie be my middle name?"

"Sure, Padparadscha. I don't see why not." He tapped his mechanical pencil against his forehead, hunching over to scratch out the N/A he'd put in that slot. "Fluorite, do you count as a family unit or a married couple?"

Fluorite shifted to let another customer through. The fusion really wasn't built for a place as small as Fish Stew Pizza, but she'd managed to make do, draping herself around three of the four walls. The others had seated themselves around the table, though no one so much as glanced at the stack of papers, taking in their surroundings with varied levels of interest. Gems have their own form of handwriting, basically indistinguishable to humans, or so they had learned when they tried to work through them the _first_  time around. It's a good thing Nanefua kept spares. "I count... as a happily ever after."

"Married individual it is, then. Since you're built of six people and stuff."

"Captain Lars," Rutile prompted, bending over to squint at the letters, as if they'd somehow become clear to her. "What's a last name?"

"An extra name."

"Why?"

"Legal stuff. It helps people keep track of you."

" _Ooooh_ , so it's like an id number!"

"I mean... I guess?" Lars stopped writing to ponder it. "Wow, that's a dark way to look at it."

"How so?"

"Nevermind. It's a cultural mistranslation."

Fluorite leaned in a bit closer. "Do... Stevens... have last names?"

Lars didn't look up. "Yeah, it's Universe. And it's not a plural. He's the only hybrid we've got 'round here."

"And... Connie?"

"Maheswaran. Her mom's a doctor."

"What's that?"

"She fixes hurt humans."

A red-orange hand poked him in the eyebrow. "Can she fix this discoloration?"

He gently batted her away, then poked his scar with the eraser. "This boo-boo ain't fixable. Ru, Til, do you count as siblings or friends?"

"What's a sibling?"

"You know what, I'm just gonna put siblings."

"Okay!"

Lars tapped the pencil faster against his head, staring uncomprehendingly at the papers. He's decidedly _not_  prepared for this. In his defense, he's been too busy dying and pirating to think about this type of thing. Which brought up the homework issue. School is positively gonna murder him. Maybe he could just drop out? A walking corpse has gotta get _some_  leeway in the legal system, right?

He'd wanted something a bit more fun for his first day than this. Or, well, not  _fun_ , necessarily, but  _meaningful_. Papers get shoved into folders, typed into databases, hip hip hooray. It's not quite the same thing as an emotional reunion between family. (Then again, he doesn't think he's up for  _that_ , either.)

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuggggggghhhhhhhh." Lars set his forehead on the table. He can smell the old grease and soda. He misses both of those things. "Just kill me."

"The robonoids already did that," Rhodonite quipped, studying a menu, flipping it around and upside down to discover its purpose.

A platter of freshly-made mozzarella sticks was set right next to him, the warm aroma enough to make him hungry. A soda- root beer; he could smell it- was set down in front of him. "To the local hero," a familiar voice said, and Lars bolted up.

"Oh," he answered intelligently. "H-h-hey, Jenny."

"That smells awful," the Rutiles informed him, equally reserved looks on their faces.

"I dunno, I kinda like it."

"A new friend is coming!" Padparadscha chirped, leaning over to wave. "Hello, new friend!"

Jenny didn't look at all different from when Lars last saw her. If it weren't for his pink skin, he could have tricked himself into thinking that it was all a weird dream, and he was just losing his mind. Reality seemed much stranger than fiction. (Then again, if this was fiction, he probably would be craving brains right now. Being a zombie isn't nearly as illustrious as people make it out to be.)

Jenny laughed, propping her serving tray on her hip. "Hello to you too, new friend."

"Her name is Padparadscha," Lars chipped in.

"I have no idea how to say that, and I'm not even going to try. Not until I hear it s'more."

"It grows on you."

"I like Paddie!"

"We call her that too. Well,  _I_  call her that." He stuck his thumb at the rest of the Off Colors. "These guys don't really do nicknames."

"Hm," Jenny answered, setting the tray on the empty table next to her. The whole place is deserted, really. Having a giant fusion around'll do that for business.

Before Lars can properly process it, there's two arms around him, giving him a solid squeeze. Jenny is letting out a loud yell. "EYYYYYYYYYYYY, LARS! MISSED YOU AROUND HERE, BOY! YOUR AWKWARD EDGY EMO BUTT DISAPPEARING LEFT A HOLE IN MY HEART!"

"Between you and Steven, I think I'm going to go deaf."

She pulled back, and it sunk in exactly what he just said. Right.  _Why_  was he doing this, again? He never thought they'd been on friendly terms before. Distant buds, maybe, but that was about it. She was in  _the cool kids_ , for pete's sake. He used to hang out with  _Ronaldo._  There's a big gap in that social environment.

Jenny whistled. "Speaking of  _edgy_ , what's with that scar, bro?"

 _A rock went through my skull_ , he thought to himself.  _Or a piece of robonoid. I dunno. It hurt, and then it didn't, because then I died, and that kind of sucks._  Instead, he said; "Hey, it's not like people can control where they get scars."

"What's a scar?"

"It's my discoloration, Ru."

" _Oh_ ," she said knowingly.

She tilted her head to the side. "You seen Sadie yet?"

"I've been here a day, Jenny," he stated sensibly, turning back to the paperwork. Anything was better than that look she was giving him. Wow, was he lucky he left the cape on the ship. He'd never live it down if she saw it. "I haven't even spoken to my folks yet, let alone Sadie."

Rhodonite stopped looking at the menu to look at Lars instead. "Isn't Sadie that human you started crying about on the way here?"

He grit his teeth. "You're literally not helping me right now."

"Sorry, Cap'n."

Jenny's eyes widened with interest. "Cap'n?"

Lars swears under his breath. "Uh, it's nothing-"

"Lars stole the ship we used!" the right Rutile exclaimed. "So we decided he'd earned the right to be our Captain."

The teenager let out a long, incredulous laugh, while he put his face in his hand, utterly defeated. She slammed her hands on the table, sending the papers flying. "You  _stole_  a  _ship_!?"

"Shhhhhh!" he pleaded desperately. "I don't wanna get arrested!"

"Lars stole multiple ships, actually," Padparadscha said thoughtfully, reaching out to grab a mozzarella stick. She tapped it on the side to rid it of clinging crumbs. "He's a good Captain." She held it up. "What do I do with this?"

"Thank you, Paddie," he mumbled dejectedly into his hand, more out of habit than anything else. " _Please_  don't tell Miss Nanefua."

"You kidding? Gunga would  _love_  this." Jenny grabbed a chair, dragging it over with an unpleasant screech. She flipped it around and sat down, propping her arms on the back of it. "Okay, now tell me everything. I want  _all_  the criminal info."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just really wanted to write this chapter, idk. I didn't expect such a big amount of reviews for the first chapter! Thanks, everybody! The Rutiles and Padparadscha are excited to make friends, while the others are still trying to settle in.
> 
> Next time, on Restless: Lars attends a cookout
> 
> -Mandaree1


	3. Lars Attends a Cookout

"I'm sure you all have questions and concerns," Garnet started, spearing a hotdog on a stick. "But I can assure you, you're all welcome here."

"Honestly, Steven," Pearl tutted, grabbing herself a stick. "It's so much easier to cook them properly on a stove. Let me cook your's, just to be safe."

Steven shrugged, plonking down next to Amethyst, who was lounging her back on the log they'd drug up to the fire pit. "The way I see it, we've been too busy lately to be a proper family. So I'm mixing business and fun and seeing if anything explodes out of it. And there's no better mixing tool than hotdogs!"

Right Rutile wrinkled her nose. "Cylindrical tubes of animal flesh are good for mixing?"

"It's a human thing," Pearl replied apologetically, looking ill from the mere smell of cooking meat. "They're a very odd species."

Fluorite took in a deep breath, resting her chin on her crossed arms. "I think the fire... is lovely."

"You're very kind, fusion Garnet," Padparadscha hummed, setting her hands on her lap. She showed no real interest in anything related to food.

"T'ain't kindness," she responded gently. "It's common decency."

"Speaking of!" Steven dashed off to his backpack, sitting alone in the sands, and retrieved several juice boxes. "Drinks! To help wash the food down."

Amethyst raised a hand. "I'll take twelve, my good dude."

"Amethyst, leave some for the others," Pearl scolded, but she was smiling.

Rhodonite sat very close to Fluorite, which was something Lars had expected. The larger fusion was the strongest of them, and therefore made her feel safe. She smiled a bit as the boy passed, hesitantly taking a box from him. "Sure, why not? Those weird brown logs smelled pretty good earlier."

"They're mozzarella sticks," Lars stressed. "And they're delicious."

The twins took a box, poking a hole and sniffing. Left Rutile cringed. Right Rutile did not. Her eyes lit up. "This smells  _way_  better than the Captain's sticks!"

"Alright, then," he said, watching her slurp it down eagerly. "Til likes fruit juice. Got it."

Amethyst eyed her. "You know you need to shapeshift a belly for that, right? And, like, an esophagus?"

"Wait," Steven broke in. "There's  _nicknames_?"

"Not technically. I call the left Rutile 'Ru' and the right Rutile 'Til' to keep orders straight. With their permission, of course."

"I'm fine with it," Ru said, giving him a thumbs up. Til still had a mouthful of juice- which she looked  _very_  keen on keeping there for the flavor- so she simply nodded. "It helps a lot when we pilot different sections of the ship."

"Juice?" Steven asked, holding one up to him. "We've got punch, if you prefer."

"I'm good on the juice, thanks."

Garnet held out a red cup to be passed over to him. Lars didn't really know where she got that from. He figured it was best not to ask. "Maybe you can go grab our straggler while you're at it." She nodded to the table holding the punch barrel- Steven had mentioned it being 'thematically appropriate'. Specifically Connie, who had been dillydallying for far longer than what was probably necessary.

Lars saluted- the Earth salute. The Homeworld salute sucked, even with his scrawny arms. He stood up and trailed over, clumsily maneuvering the sandy dips. In his defense, he'd been jumping and climbing a lot of craggy crevices lately. Not so much beaches. Connie didn't turn to him as he got closer, shifting aside as he approached.

Connie wasn't someone he knew personally. At least, not all that well. He'd _heard_  plenty about her from Steven. It seemed like he didn't know how to stop gushing about her. She didn't seem to get out much, aside from school and whatever she did with the Gems in her free time, so it wasn't like the chances they'd bump into each other prior to this mess were all that high.

"Howdy," he greeted, then wondered when in the universe that had become an appropriate greeting for a situation like this. "Is the nozzle stuck or something?"

"Nope." She flicked the tab up. Lars hastened to stick his cup under to avoid causing a mess. "Just- just giving everyone privacy."

"Oh. Uh, thanks."

"Mmhmm."

"Do you get invited to these types of things often?"

"I tag along for most Gem things, yeah." She took a sip of her punch, staring directly at the flickering flame. "Except for missions, that is."

" _Oh_ ," he said, in a different way.

Connie glanced at him, suddenly sheepish. "I didn't mean anything by that, really. I'm still new to this, and I don't have healing powers like Steven. They just want me to be safe."

 _That's what everyone wants for you, isn't it?_  The gleam in her eyes told him so. It also told him she was pretty sick of it. "Yeah, well," he replied, awkwardly ruffling her hair. "You wouldn't want to end up like me, huh?"

She squinted at him. Lars tried not to flinch away. He didn't do staring very well either. He didn't handle a lot of things with grace, now that he thought about it. He should probably work on that. Eventually. Now isn't really a good time.

"No," she observed finally, eyes flickering down to her admittedly bland drink. "I suppose I wouldn't."

They return, a million things unsaid, to Pearl handing Steven a scorched hotdog and a bun. "There. It should be plenty cooked now, right?"

"Uh... yeah." He blinked up at her, then the hotdog. "Anybody got any ketchup?"

"Plug your nose," Connie suggested, and- to Lars' surprise- sat down on the log next to the Captain, a small smile on her face. "It always helps me with pineapple."

"What's a pineapple?"

"A really gross and overhyped fruit."

" _I_  like pineapple."

"Steven, you put  _cheese puffs_  on  _cake._ "

"Touché, Maheswaran. Touché."

The right Rutile finally discarded the juice in her mouth, spitting it out behind the log they had been seated on. Where they had found so many logs was also a mystery. She straightened, wiping her mouth. "So, who's our superior officer here, anyway? I mean, of course we have Captain Lars, but..."

"I'm not your superior officer," Lars argued. The thought made his skin crawl. "All I did was steal a couple of ships and break into a party. Captain is more of a joke name than an actual rating."

"You took more risks for us than was necessary, Lars." Rhodonite was frowning. "We placed our lives in your hands, and you saw us here. That basically sealed the deal."

He let out a groan, slugging back the punch with the vague hope it had fermented into alcohol. Crepes. Actually, crepes didn't even begin to make this any better. Lars could make crepes. Lars could cook. Baking was something very near and dear to him, though he didn't like to talk about it. He gets crepes. Him and crepes? Best friends. Practically married. He  _got_  food. He got it so much he sometimes used it in place of soft swears, like right now, in his head.

 _This_? He waved his mental hands at the whole lot of them. He didn't get  _this_. He's too young for most of  _this_. This is an adult responsibility, and Lars would never be stupid enough to claim to be an adult. At least, he'd never claim to be ready for adult-level responsibilities. He's barely even ready to drink punch and eat hotdogs with Steven's moms. And let's not dive back into that whole paperwork thing.

"I'm leader of the Crystal Gems," Garnet spoke finally. Lars couldn't get a read on her face, which was perfectly blank, as always. Her cooked hotdog sat on her thigh, uneaten. "But I'm not  _your_  leader. Here, you don't _need_  a leader. Not if you don't want one."

"Is it really so simple?" Rhodonite raised an eyebrow.

Pearl nodded. "Don't hurt any humans, and there won't be any trouble between us."

 _That_  got the fusion to crack a small smile. "We like to think we're decently accepting 'round these parts."

"Just FYI, I might come by sometime to eat you out of ship and home," Amethyst volunteered. "But otherwise I'm chill."

"I can bring some books by, if you want." Connie swished the punch around in her cup. "Lars could read them to you, I guess."

"I predict Fluorite will take a nap," Padparadscha chimed in, and they all looked at the large fusion, finding her curled up on the warm sands, softly snoring.

Steven let out a little squeak. "She's  _adorable_. I'm adopting her. She's my grandma now. Unless she doesn't wanna be my grandma."

"I think she'll take it as a compliment, Steven," Lars reported, smiling.

Connie poked him in the ribs, unintentionally brushing a ticklish spot. He jumped with a yip. She pointed off to the side. "You got visitors."

Lars squinted. He could just make out a small form disappearing around the corner of the wall of rock that separated the temple from the town. His heart gave a weird little tick- considering how slow it already was, that probably wasn't very good for it. He shoved his cup into the girl's waiting hands, standing up without really looking around. "I'll be right back."

He won't pretend he was elegant. Lars is many things- elegant is not on that list. He breaks off into a sprint his gym teacher would find a disgrace to her profession, slipping and siding like he went ice-skating without the skates. Sadie is power walking, clearly hoping to sneak away. Not on his afterlife. "Sadie!"

He expects a fight. He expects her to keep walking. He  _doesn't_  expect her to whirl around on him, tears in her eyes, and point a finger at him. "YOU'VE BEEN BACK FOR TWO DAYS NOW AND YOU'RE ATTENDING A  _COOKOUT_  INSTEAD OF TALKING TO YOUR PARENTS? OR  _ME?_  OR  ** _ANYONE_**?"

"I'm a busy guy, Sadie!" Lars defended, waving his arms around. "I had to do  _paperwork_!"

"Too busy for your  _parents_!?" She viciously wiped her face on her jacket sleeve. "Do you know how I found out you were back?  _Jenny_  told me. Not your parents, or you.  _Jenny_."

"I  _knew_  I should've sworn her to secrecy."

"You told  _Jenny_  before you told Mr. and Mrs. Barriga?"

Something uncomfortable lodged in his chest. Not guilt. He already had that before. Whatever it was, he didn't like it. "Look. I'm pastel pink with a huge emo scar, Sadie. How do I even begin to explain that?"

"They already know that."

"Good for them! That doesn't make me walking up to the doorstep any easier. If anything, it's even harder, because they know I died in the middle of nowhere. What's that gonna  _do_  to them?" It'd be like having a ghost ask for free room and board. Haunting  _and_  annoying. "At least on the beach I have a vague idea of what I'm getting into."

"This isn't about what  _you're_  ready for, you dingus!" She poked him in the belly. "It's about your worried-sick parents!"

"Why are we arguing about my parents!?" he yelled.

"Because it's easier than facing the actual problem at hand!" she yelled back.

"Isn't that kinda counter-productive?" Lars shouted. "And hypocritical!?"

"Shut up and hug me, you jerk!"

"FINE!"

"FINE!"

Sadie yanked him into an embrace, which Lars happily returned. He snorked back some snot. "Dangit, I knew I was gonna sob like a baby."

She laughed. It sounded wet. "Same."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeey, cuteness! What can I say? I'm having fun writing more and more of this. I'm sure I'll slow way down soon. =)
> 
> Next time, on Restless: The Rutiles make their first Earth friend!
> 
> -Mandaree1


	4. Ice Cream

While Fluorite had taken to napping during the space flight, none of the others had much interest in the activity, though they did their best to keep quiet for the ones who did. So when the right Rutile nudged the left, and she opened her eyes as though roused from slumber, it was really just bringing her back from a rather in-depth daydream.

"Let's go," Rutile whispered. Rutile nodded.

They slid out of their chair. The docking bay was left open to allow the sea air to float in, so they had no real worry about waking their Captain and the large fusion up. They clasped their hands together and started down the arched pathway into the cool early morning.

"Where do you think you're going?"

The Rutiles stopped and turned, smiling at Rhodonite. The smaller fusion was sitting in her chair, watching them curiously. "We're going grocery shopping!"

She blinked. "You're going what?"

"Grocery shopping," the right one repeated. "The Connie human mentioned it during our cookout. She said it was important for humans to do it, so we're gonna go grocery shopping for Captain Lars!"

"Okay," Rhodonite said, sounding confused. "What's a grocery?"

"Dunno!" she chirped. "We're gonna figure it out!"

"Oh." The fusion tipped her head back. "Okay. Good luck."

The twins touched the sandy ground with a little bounce, excited. They'd both been eager to explore this new planet ever since touching down, but with Captain Lars being tugged back and forth it seemed like they were going to have to do it solo. That didn't bother them; they'd always been the Gems to sneak around under Homeworld, keeping track of the robonoids and any other defects that might come their way. Compared to all that, the Earth ought to be easy.

Beach City was awash with color. There weren't many humans out yet, but smells tickled their noses as they gleefully walked down the sidewalk, waving to every human that passed them. Most of all, they were excited about making friends. (Though, deep down, neither of them were sure how to do that without some form of danger in the middle. Practice and time, they suspected, would be key.)

"We found it!" the left Rutile exclaimed eventually, pointed triumphantly at a sign. "Now we just need to gather the grocery!"

"Okay..." the right Rutile squinted at the vast area of Earth things they could just catch a glimpse of. People moved around them and into the store, grabbing carts. "But which thing is the grocery?"

"Good question. Do you think it's the sign?"

"If it was the sign, the other humans would've gotten it by now."

Rutile sucked in a breath through her teeth, creating a hissing noise. "I  _think_  we may have been a bit overzealous on this venture."

"Ditto."

* * *

"Oh," Rutile said, surprised, when a waiter came by and dropped a soda at their table. She waved after him. "Thank you, friend!"

The left Rutile watched on, chin perched in her hands, attempting to brainstorm ideas for fixing their little error. She perked up a little. "That smells like whatever Captain Lars was drinking at the paperwork place!"

"I think it's the same thing." She nudged it over for her twin to hold, casting a curious look after the waiter. "He seemed nice, giving us this. He didn't look at us, though."

"Are you surprised?" she asked wryly. "We don't exactly look like a normal human, do we?"

"Now, now, let's not jump to conclusions. Eye contact might be a sign of hierarchy on Earth. Since we're so new, we're looked over."

"Captain Lars looks at us just fine," the Rutile pointed out. "Face it, Til. We're still outcasts."

Her eyes flickered down to the soda. "I guess it  _would_  be silly to assume otherwise, huh?"

She shrugged. "Steven and Captain Lars said we'd be safe here. They never said we'd be popular."

Rutile reached out to grab Rutile's hand, hoping to gain some level of comfort. "We should just go back to the ship. We can try another day. With something simpler."

The other Gem nodded, but before they could stand up a pudgy finger poked them in the hip, making the duo jolt. A strawberry twin cone was held up to them for judgement.

"Huh?" The twins tilted their heads so they could see around to the small human behind it. They didn't know it then, but they would later come to call him Onion. "Is this for us?"

Onion wiggled it a bit enticingly. They took the cone from him, knowing that they had no way of eating the confection. The left Rutile's eyes brightened. "Oooh, I love how it smells!"

"So you _do_  like food," the other mused. "Hello, tiny human. Do you have a name?"

He crawled up on the free seat across from them, blinking owlishly, as if he'd never seen a Gem in his life.

"Oh," Rutile said. "Do you not like to talk?"

He slowly nodded.

She nodded back in understanding. "Okay. I'm Rutile, and this is Rutile. Do you know what a grocery is?"

Onion waved a hand in a so-so manner.

"Yeah, that's how it was for us, too. It's so confusing!"

The ice cream melted onto the table between them, forgotten.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short but cute!
> 
> The next few chapters are gonna be about the Off Colors making friends, exploring, etc, but mostly I think it's a reflection of how they tackle new situations. The Rutiles are fearless; they wanna explore!... Even though they really aren't sure where they're going or what they're doing.
> 
> Next time, on Restless: Rhodonite makes a necklace.
> 
> -Mandaree1


	5. Seashells by the Seashore

Rhodonite isn't quite sure what to make of Beach City. It's kind of loud, and there's a lot of people, and they're prone to stare. They stare at Fluorite, they stare at Lars, they certainly stare at the twins, and they stare at Rhodonite. (Padparadscha seems to be the most overlooked, but that's always been the Sapphire's way.) Rhodonite hasn't been stared at in a long time. Not since she was replaced.

She's not entirely sure what to make of the other Gems, either. They're alright enough, she supposed. They took care of Steven, and Steven had been nothing but kind to all of them. The Captain seemed to respect them. And she'd be lying if she didn't want to learn more about their fusion leader- to feel a sort of kinship with her. But that didn't make her any less wary. Their Amethyst is small, but no one brings it up. Their Pearl is loud, but no one scolds her. Their Garnet is quiet and intense, but she doesn't seem mean.

At the end of the day, Rhodonite isn't sure what to make of how accepted it all is.

She does like the beach itself, however, and takes the time to finally indulge in it, prompted by the twins' bravery. Rhodonite isn't really one to go running around like they did. She likes sitting and watching the ocean move, sand digging into her knees. Sometimes, she grabs a handful and lets it run out from between her fingers.

It's been an adjustment. On Homeworld, she'd never felt safe or comfortable enough to do this sort of thing. Admittedly, Earth hasn't proven to be entirely safe either- there were Mayor Nanefuas, and evil paperwork, and police, and there was something _off_  about that human the twins had befriended, she didn't care what anyone else said- but she knew Captain Lars wouldn't have idled here if he didn't think it was a good choice overall. He's had too many brushes with death to have them be shattered now. Also, they have Steven and Connie. They're pretty cool too.

Something shifting caught the corner of her eye, and Rhodonite turned to see the surf slowly draw away, leaving a shell. She took a second to hazard a look around, then stood on wobbly legs to pick it up, rubbing a thumb over the ridges. She thought Steven might like it, with the light pink color of it. Maybe she'll give it to Captain Lars to give to him. Oh, but he always got weird about that sort of thing, didn't he? She respected Lars quite a bit, but there was no denying that he had the social skills of a Peridot. A really,  _really_  embarrassed Peridot. She'd have to ask Fluorite to do it.

"Uh, hello?"

Rhodonite let out a yell, her top set of arms flying high in surrender. Her lower, thinner arms do the opposite, reluctantly curling into fists. The dynamic in Rhodonite had always been a bit complicated; the Ruby in her wanted to protect and take care of her, but the Pearl wanted the same, and the Pearl had been stronger. The fusion is left stiff with shock, prepared for whatever was coming her way.

The human was among the tallest she'd seen, but even then he didn't come up to her chin. He smiled up at her awkwardly, shuffling a bag on his shoulder. "Uh, hi," he said. "Sorry to scare you."

"Oh," she said, feeling silly.

"I'm Jamie," he explained, holding up the bag. "I'm the, uh- the mailman."

Rhodonite wasn't sure what that meant, but she assumed it was his placement. Did humans have placements? Could they  _pick_  placements? Everything around here was weird. "Rhodonite. I'm... well, I'm _not_  a mailman." She put her hands on her hips in an attempt to look confident. "That's something."

Jamie chuckled, but it was just as awkward as his shuffling. Rhodonite felt like she should be doing something, but she didn't know what. "A-anyway, I just figured it'd be a good idea to introduce myself. Steven's always got a new mom or two lying around, and I have to come by a lot, so..." His voice grew concerned. "Oh, no! It broke!"

"What?"

"Your shell. It broke!"

Rhodonite blinked at him, shocked, then turned to look. She'd accidentally gripped too tight, breaking it to tiny shards, which were sprinkled across the sand like pebbles. A small, morbid part of her thought it looked a lot like a broken Gem. "Oh. So it did."

Jamie bent at the knees to examine them. "I could bring some glue by tomorrow, if you wanted. We could fix it."

"Fix it?"

"Y-yeah. Or we could make a necklace! I think you need a drill for those, but I dunno for sure. I'll have to consult the internet."

Rhodonite's mind hadn't wandered past 'fix it.' "Humans can just... fix things?"

"Most things, yes."

"But why? There's lots of other shells out there, isn't there?" Rhodonite stared at Jamie as if  _he_  were the alien from another planet. "Isn't it replaceable?"

"Sorta?" He shrugged. "But it was your's, so not really."

"Mine?" she repeated, trying to latch onto the concept. All that had really been her's before was her name and her form. "Huh. Y'know what? I'd like that."

The next day, Rhodonite sported a necklace of tiny pink pieces, which she refused to take off. It was her's now, and she held tight to that fact. That, and Padparadscha told her it looked very pretty on her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jamie's a nice dude, yo. I hope we see him again sometime.
> 
> Rhodonite is the strategist of the group, and she's also the most anxious, so it makes sense for her to watch from a distance and slowly stick her foot into the new world. But life is what happens when you make plans, hence her bumping into the mailman.
> 
> Next time, on Restless (which I'm considering re-naming, though I dunno to what): Fluorite has an interview.
> 
> -Mandaree1


	6. Interviews

"Hey, dad, I brought back a customer!"

Mr. Fryman's face lit up as he turned. "You did? Why, Ronaldo, I'm so-" he paused, taking in the sight of a giant caterpillar fusion ever-so-carefully pushing her way into his restaurant. "Ronaldo! What have I told you about using your break time to dig into paranormal weirdness?"

Peedee, bent over the fryer, let out a quiet sigh in the background. "I know I should be grateful that he's setting the bar so low, and yet all I feel is bad for him."

"What?" Ronaldo defended, gesturing to her. "She's a paying customer! Aren't you, Miss?"

"Yeah?" Mr. Fryman squinted one eye up at her. "You got money, ma'am?"

Fluorite unclasped a fistful of dollar bills. "This... is money... yes?" she asked. "The nice gentleman... gave it to me."

"Uh, dad?" Peedee was bent over the counter now, and considerably less hot now that he was away from the grease. "I dunno if she can fit into the Citywalk."

Mr. Fryman's eyes darted between his two sons, conflicted. He let out a long sigh and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Well, since she's a paying customer, she can stay."

"Yay!"

"But if any other weirdos show up, you're grounded."

"Not yay!"

* * *

Peedee and Ronaldo both took the time to help Fluorite inside, shoving a few tables to the side so she could curl up in a coil. It was still awkward- the fusion was too big for most buildings overall- but it was better than it had been at Fish Stew Pizza. By the time the hash browns are done and on the table Ronaldo has pulled up a chair and gotten out a notepad and pen, perching his very serious detective hat on top.

"Now, Fluorite," he said. "You are an alien, correct?"

"Mmhmmm," Fluorite said, carefully picking a single piece off the plate to study. "I need to learn how to eat... something about... an esophagus?"

"You lack an esophagus?"

"I... believe so."

"Fascinating." He scribbled something down. Fluorite didn't know how to read Earth writing, but she thought the jerking of his hand and wrist was more slapdash than Lars had been. "Now, Miss Fluorite-"

"Ronaldo!" Peedee called, back at the stove, like always. "You've got ten minutes!"

"I know, bro!" Ronaldo yelled. "I can read a clock!"

"I'm not making all these orders by myself, Ronaldo!"

"I know, I know."

"It smells... very nice," Fluorite reassured the child, just as she set the bit she was holding down.

"As I was saying." Ronaldo cleared his throat. "How do you choose a leader on your world? We elect our's. Do you seen our President as your leader while you're here, or your original planet's?"

"Hmm..." Fluorite tilted her head back, almost hitting the lights. "I suppose... we determine our leaders... through  _strength_."

His eyes lit up. "Then you must be the leader of your crew!" Ronaldo did an enthusiastic salute. "It's an honor to have you on our humble little planet, ma'am!"

"Oh... no..." She shook her head. "Our Captain... is Captain Lars."

The pen slipped out of his hand with surprise. "Lars? You mean Lars Barriga?"

She slowly nodded.

Ronald let out a noise between a laugh and a scoff. "He's a jerk! And, to top it all off, he's a bean pole! How is  _he_  strong?"

"He's done so much for us," Fluorite defended, and she was so sure she didn't even need to come up with the words. "Without him... we wouldn't have made it here."

"You've gotta be kidding me," he snorted. Then: "Wait. You  _are_  kidding me, right?"

The fusion didn't respond. She just watched the realization take over.

"Huh." Ronald ran a hand through his hair, sounding surprisingly calm. "I mean, I knew he was in space. And I felt really bad for him. Really. Honest. But a hero? Lars?" He blew a raspberry, bitter about unresolved conflicts between them. "He freaks out over bad photos."

"That... doesn't surprise me," she agreed. "But he's also very good at stealing ships."

"Wrap it up, Ronaldo!" Peedee badgered him. The older boy didn't respond.

"Are you... okay?"

"'M fine," he mumbled, sounding embarrassed. "Just. Wow. This is weird. Here I am, trying to do an interview on my break, and Lars is out doing crazy space hijinks. I must be pretty sad, huh?"

"Not... at all..." Fluorite patted the top of his head. "You'll make... a great... space diplomat... one day."

"You think?"

"Mmmhmm."

"I'm trying," Ronaldo admitted. "Heck knows I've made a lot of mistakes. Just ask Steven. But we're even- he made me lose my girlfriend- so no hard feelings. I hope, anyway."

"That doesn't  _sound_... like Steven."

"Hmm?" He finally looked up to blink at her. "Oh. Yeah. Steven's a good kid, don't get me wrong, and he's always been nice enough to indulge me, but everybody has their bad traits. Steven gets a little too... caught up, I guess? You wouldn't think it, but boy does he need to  _chill_  sometimes."

"We all... do bad... from time to time."

Peedee came around the counter with a towel across his shoulder, tugging on his older brother's shirt. "Look, Ronaldo, dad's already in a bad enough mood from you bringing a space alien into our  _tiny_  restaurant. I refuse to man the fryer alone with him."

"Okay, okay, I'm coming."

Fluorite tapped the boy's shoulder. "May I... help?"

"Y'know what?" Peedee prompted after a short pause, grabbing the notepad out of Ronaldo's hands and flipping it closed. "Sure, why not. See about the handling the orders. Just tell us what the people want, and we do the rest."

"Sounds... lovely."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fluorite is a grandma to all. There is no escaping her grandma-ness. =) She strikes me as the type to let the world kinda flow around her. She just kinda goes with it.
> 
> Next time, on Restless (which might have a different name by then): Padparadscha and Steven play with some leaves.
> 
> -Mandaree1


	7. Piles of Leaves

"Hello, Steven," Padparadscha said suddenly, making the boy jump. "Aren't these odd textured things interesting?"

Steven cleared his throat and picked one up. "They're, uh, they're leaves. They fall off things called trees."

The Sapphire had one between her gloved hands, slowly but surely running her thumbs over it. She frowned. "How unfortunate!"

"Oh, no no no, it's okay!" He flapped his hands as if about to fly away. "They grow back when it gets warmer."

Padparadscha slowly settled, bringing the leaf to her chest. "Oh, thank the stars."

Steven watched the display with a warm smile. He didn't know any of the Off Colors as well as he knew his own Crystal Gems, but they all seemed to be pretty open to trying new things, and he appreciated that. "How're you all settling in?"

"Hmmm?" She turned to look at him, though he couldn't really look back with her bangs. "It's been delightful so far. The Rutiles spend a lot of time at your boardwalk. Rhodonite has a passion for the sands. I think Fluorite may have gotten one of your Earth jobs. The Captain spends most of his time sleeping; I believe he's reluctant to go and speak with his 'parents', whatever those are."

"That sounds like him," Steven agreed, and filed away a reminder to talk to him about it later. "And you?"

"Yes?"

"Well, are you happy here?"

Padparadscha smiled. "This is the most beautiful planet I've ever seen."

"Really?" The boy's eyes widened. "I always thought- well, I mean..." He tried to find the right words. "Pearl always says Homeworld is the prettiest place she's ever been. I just figured..."

She set the leaf down and shook her head. "Oh, I never saw Homeworld."

"You didn't?"

"Not the top part, anyway. I came out of the Kindergarten too early- no one was around. I wandered away before anyone could arrive." Padparadscha seemed disinterested with the information, as if it weren't part of her story. "Rhodonite found me. She's a good friend."

Steven hesitantly reached out to touch her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Paddie."

She tilted her head to the side. "There's nothing to feel sorry for. I'm here now, and it's _lovely_  here."

"I'm glad," he said, heartfelt. "We're all glad."

Padparadscha took longer to answer this time, more so than was usual. Steven thought she might be ruminating on what he'd said. The Sapphire handed him her leaf as if as a prize for his kind words. "I know my time isn't right," she hummed. "I've accepted that. I try to help regardless. And look where I am now? I'm Captain Lars'  _Technical Adviser_!" she said the words with relish. "I get to be a friend, and I get to be here. Isn't that  _amazing_?"

"It is," Steven agreed. " _You're_  amazing, Padparadscha."

She processed the praise, smiling, and handed him another leaf to touch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short chapter, but a good one! Padparadscha just wants to help, ya'll. She takes it all in on her own time.
> 
> Next time, on Restless (which I AM still considering re-naming): Lars fixes a car.
> 
> -Mandaree1


	8. Lars Fixes a Car

Lars startled awake from his nap by a sound he hadn't heard in quite awhile- namely, the chime of his phone. His body rolled off the captain's chair and to the floor as a form of defense, as if he could hide away from reality by ducking underneath a panel. ( _Y'see this?_  He found himself thinking. This is the kind of stupid reactionary stuff he did that got him killed in the first place. He tried to ride a robot like a bucking bull, for pete's sake.)

Fluorite hunkered over him, frowning. "Are you... okay?"

"Yeah, fine." He sat up with an awkward frown, digging his phone out of his pocket. "Sorry if I woke you."

"Not... a problem..." She was already heading for the engine room. "Call me... if you need me."

Something about her wording- about him needing her, and not the other way around- left Lars feeling a bit strange. He glanced at his caller ID, clicking answer even after not recognizing the number. "Yellow?"

"Hey, Lars?" a slightly muffled voice says. "It's Connie."

"Hey," he greeted, slightly surprised. "How did you- never mind. Steven."

"Yeah. Stupid question. You mentioned building the Star Skipper yourself?"

"Yup. Rest in pieces."

"Hallelujah. You wouldn't happen to be able to fix cars, would you?"

"I guess?" Lars answered. "I mean, I sort of can. Why?"

"Because my dad's car broke down, and  _someone-_ " here, she raised her voice- "is too proud to call an actual repairman, so I have to bother random teenagers instead."

"Who did you call?" he heard Doug ask.

"Lars, dad. He's a friend of Steven's."

"Is he the one with the anime scar?"

"Dad, please. Be polite."

"I mean, he's not wrong," Lars said earnestly. "It  _is_  pretty anime."

* * *

"You're a magic man, son," Doug Maheswaran exclaimed as he pulled Lars into a- frankly- uncomfortable hug, pulling back with a smile. "I'd offer you my second child as payment, but I don't plan to have any other children."

"I'd rather not have a child," he wheezed. "I babysat once. That was enough for me."

"Dad, please," Connie pleaded. "Lars isn't the touchy-feely type."

"She's not wrong. The last time I got touchy-feely with something, it blew up."

"Speaking of babysitting..." Doug's face turned somber. "Would you mind staying with Connie for the day? I'll pay you."

Lars blinked at him, then at Connie, then at him again. "Sir, your daughter could wreck my skinny butt with her pinkie finger. She doesn't really need watching."

"I know, I know. It's more for appearances than anything else." He shrugged, holding up his hands. "What do I tell the neighbors? I left her alone because she's been learning to snap necks in her free time?"

"That was _one_  lesson, and I only asked for self-defense purposes!"

"I see your point," Lars admitted. "I don't see why I can't hang out for a bit. You cool with it, Connie?"

"As long as you don't get in the way of my math homework, I don't see why not."

* * *

Connie originally wandered in for a glass of water, but instead found Lars wrapping a sheet in tin foil. "Are you... baking?"

"Not so much baking as I am sticking things on a pan and putting them in the oven."

"That's basically baking."

"Okay. So I'm baking." He held up a bowl of cookie dough. "Found a dry packet of the stuff in the back of the cupboard. Figured I'd see if it was any good."

Connie peered over the counter with something akin to awe. "I didn't think my mom and dad even knew what cookie dough is."

"Being real, I think half of it is dustwebs." He carefully began spooning them out. "I'm just really craving cookies right now."

"Wow," Connie said. "A man who fixes cars and bakes. No wonder Sadie's into you."

His cheeks flared up. Truth be told, Lars had only taken the class in hopes of being more appealing to the girl in question. Looking back, it was really stupid. "Oh, ha-ha. That's rich, coming from you. Your boyfriend can't do either."

"Steven has a  _lion_. That puts him in a completely different playing field." She squinted at him. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Shoot."

"Do you, like, _need_  food still?"

"Need it?" he echoed. Lars slowly shook his head, leaning his elbows on the counter. "Don't think so. I didn't eat the whole way back, but I don't feel any weaker. I crave it like crazy, though, especially now that I can smell it anytime I want." He rifled through his fluffy hair. "But I'm pretty sure that's just an old urge my body is used to following."

"Weird."

"You're telling me."

The cookies come out dry and crumbly, but neither of them complain, carefully munching on them on the sofa. Between them sat open a math textbook, a piece of paper, a pencil, and a calculator, and one glance at it told Lars he was entirely out of his league. Any math skills he may have stopped when measuring ingredients wasn't involved.

"I feel like there's an awkward air," Lars broached finally, vaguely waving a chocolate-smeared hand. "In this area, or thereabouts."

Connie shrugged, taking a sip of her water. "We aren't exactly close friends."

"That didn't stop you from buddying up with my buds, though."

"I'm used to how Gems act. Technically speaking, I'm more acquainted with Gems than I am humans." She set the glass down with a little thud. "There's also the fact that it's kinda my job to protect them. Might as well be on friendly terms with 'em, y'know?"

"Protect them?"

"I'm training to be a Crystal Gem," Connie reminded him. "I'll be protecting everything on Earth. That includes you guys."

"Thanks in advance, then."

"Just doing my job. Well, I  _will be_  just doing my job. You know what I mean." Connie tipped her head back so it rested on the back of the sofa. "I'm really sorry about what happened to you, Lars."

"But?" he prompted, hearing that particular bite to her words.

She grimaced, massaging the bridge of her nose. "Part of me is jealous. I mean, how messed up is that?" Connie shook her head at herself. "I feel really bad for what you've gone through. Really. It's just... I've been training for so long to go into battle, but when Steven needed me most... I couldn't be there. And  _you_  were. And it wasn't  _your_  job. You're just a civilian. Or, you  _were_ , anyway."

"You're right. That  _is_  kinda messed up." Lars leaned back on the couch and considered it. "But I can get where it's coming from."

"Thanks."

"No, I'm being serious. Remember how I freaked out on the Sun Incinerator? It's kinda like that, only it's backwards."

"This is a weird conversation," Connie noted.

"Yeah," Lars said, with a tiny, half-ashamed giggle. "But we're weird people."

"Touché." She shoved his arm. "Thanks."

"No big." He snatched the remote off the table. "You wanna see if that cooking show is on?"

"Dessert Storm?"

"Yeah, that one."

"Sure, why not. I love watching suburban moms get pwned by prisoners."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whelp, this took me longer than I originally planned. I kinda got side-tracked. Also; mild easter egg to another show here, if you can call it that. It's a pretty obvious name-drop.
> 
> Anywho. Next Time, on Restless (still might be re-named): Lars and Sadie go on a date... sort of.
> 
> -Mandaree1


	9. Lars Does a Thing

"Is it even legal for us to be hanging out on the cliff like this?"

"I mean, Steven and his moms do it all the time, so..."

Sadie took a huge bite out of her sandwich. "Yeah, but they've never really had to follow the rules. I tried to explain parking tickets to Steven once and he told me I should just recycle them."

"Before or after paying?"

"He said something about saying sorry, hugging the police officer, and making sure to drive better after."

"Ah."

"Yeah."

Lars bent his head over the cliff, squinting down at the group below. He could just make out Amethyst's tiny purple form amongst the Off Colors, holding up a piece of food that was too small for him to decipher. He swallowed a bout of vertigo and edged back, trying not to think about what happened the  _last_  time he climbed up something.

( _Rhodonite might be dead if you hadn't_ , he told himself firmly.  _They all might be. Steven didn't exactly have any weapons laying around. You can't regret what saved those closest to you. That's kind of stupid_.)

Lars sighed, ruffling his hair. It felt weird to the touch now- he wasn't sure if that was because he was a zombie portal or because he'd yet to take a shower. Hey, when you're undead, it's not like you sweat. "This was a bad idea, wasn't it?"

"I dunno, Lars." Sadie took a sip of her pepsi. "You tell me."

"I'm... not sure what you want me to say, honestly." Lars sighed. "I messed up.  _I'm_  messed up? I dunno if there's a difference at this point. I'm trying to be someone you can enjoy hanging out with, but I think I've still got a long way to go."

"This isn't about you asking me to hang out, Lars."

"It's not?"

"No."

"Is it my parents, then?"

"No, but I _will_  single-handedly drag you there one of these days." Sadie sighed, wiping a hand across her face. "It's just starting to sink in that, after all we've been through, you're still too embarrassed to spend time in public with me."

"What?" Lars' voice cracked. "I don't think that."

"Then why are we  _here_?" She waved her hands around. "We could be literally anywhere else, but you insisted on a flipping cliff."

"Now that I think about it, that's got creepy 'I might push you over' vibes all over, doesn't it?" Lars ran his fingers through his hair again. It was something of a nervous tic. You get a lot of those when you die in space. "I just... you're Sadie Killer now, y'know? You shouldn't have to be seen around town with a zombie. I mean, come'on. Sure, it _might_  be good publicity, but nobody  _actually_  knows I'm a zombie, so I just look like a cosplayer."

Sadie let out a strangled noise. "Steven told you about Sadie Killer?"

"Yeah, of course. It's  _Steven_."

"Good point," she admitted, then sighed. "I mean, you're a pretty big deal yourself. You're a  _space pirate_. Who can claim that at our age and not be joking?"

"Nobody knows that, though," Lars pointed out. "And, like, I  _wanna_  brag, but, at the same time, I don't want people callin' me a bragger, you know? Does that even make any sense?"

Sadie reluctantly shuffled over a tiny bit, resting her forehead on his elbow. "We're idiots, aren't we?"

"Sadie," Lars said. "We're eating lunch on a cliff while my crew of  _space delinquents_  learn how to eat below us, discussing your career as a _heavy metal singer_. I  _think_  the word you're looking for is  _awesome_."

"This is ridiculous."

"Yeah, probably."

She snorted. " _We're_  ridiculous."

"There's no probably there."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a short ditty, I know, but I've been meaning to update, and I wanted to go into Lars and Sadie's dynamic a bit more.
> 
> Next Time, on Restless: Rhodonite runs into someone by accident at the store.
> 
> -Mandaree1


	10. Grocery Shopping

Rhodonite didn't know how much she'd enjoy having a necklace until she did, her larger, Ruby-like hands almost constantly fiddling with it, feeling the edges. It was alien, but not in a bad way. She'd found lots of sensations like that. The grittiness of the sand, the smell of cooking grease, and the cold wind that comes from the place humans keep their packages of raw meat. The last one is a new favorite, so she indulged herself a bit, taking in a deep breath.

Until someone poked her in the back, almost upending her completely with shock. Hands gripped her shoulders, pulling her away from what would inevitably be an ouchie tumble.

"Sorry 'bout that," Garnet said. A red basket hung from her arm. "Didn't mean to spook you."

"Well, you managed." Rhodonite let out a half-confused laugh, fingers in her hair. "What're you doing here?"

Garnet hoisted the basket up a little. "Grocery shopping."

"Oh," Rhodonite said, nodding to herself. "So this is where the grocery shopping is. The twins were trying to find it." She glanced up at her, finding her face blank. Was she always like this? "Mind if I join you?"

"Not at all."

Grocery shopping, she soon found, was an interesting experience. There were all sorts of weird jars and bags and boxes of things that humans could pick from shelves, and most of them had unique smells and pictures attached. Garnet hardly seemed to care, grabbing things with very little concern. Rhodonite assumed she knew more about this than she did, many years of taking care of Steven under her belt.

"So," she prompted finally. "You're the leader, right?"

Garnet's lips tightened. "Somethin' like that."

"You weren't always were, were you?"

"No." She shook her head. "Rose was."

Rhodonite tried to imagine it. She knew what a Rose Quartz looked like. Vaguely, anyway. She'd been around for a long time, even if she hadn't always  _been_. "So she's...?"

"Yes."

"Oh. I'm sorry."

"S'fine," she said, her tone of voice portraying it was not even a little fine. "It was years ago now."

"That's not long for Gems," she commented.

"It's not," Garnet agreed, setting a pack of hotdogs in the basket. "Steven loves these."

Rhodonite set a thicker arm on her shoulder, the other busily twisting her seashell necklace. The movement helped her feel a little more calm. "Um, listen. I didn't know her or anything... but I know what it's like to lose a friend." A bitter laugh left her lips. "I mean, when you spend eons in a bunch of tunnels, friends are bound to come and go."

The other fusion turned to her fully. "I'm sorry to hear that."

She shrugged. "Not much we can do about it now. We didn't know about the Earth back then."

To her surprise, Garnet managed to crack a smile. "I appreciate what you're trying to say." She led Rhodonite towards the front door. "That's enough shopping for me today."

Rhodonite glanced behind them as an alarm went off, but Garnet kept right on walking, basket and all. "Are we supposed to stop?"

"I never have," she said confidentially.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let! Them! Bond!
> 
> Next Time, on Restless: Lars has an unfortunate visitor that, for once, isn't Emerald.
> 
> -Mandaree1


	11. Rude Visitors

"Hey, Steven," the left Rutile greeted as he opened the door. "Captain Lars asked me to come get you."

"He asked me too!" the right Rutile chirped.

"Oh. Um..." Steven craned his neck out the front entryway to the beach house. The angle wasn't quite right to see the Sun Incinerator from here. "Is there a problem?"

"STTTTTTTTTTTTTEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEENNNNNNNNNNNNNN!"

"There's a problem," Rutile agreed, stepping aside. "Take a look."

Steven raced out onto the porch, slamming into the railing. Down below he could easily make out Lars, his hair and clothes disheveled from sleep, wrestling with Lion. Though, really, wrestling was too nice a word for the scene, as the teen was pushing the great creature away from him by the muzzle, and Lion, while not exactly forging on ahead, showed no signs of backing down. "Lars!"

"Steven!" he yelled up at him. "Get your stupid cat offa me!"

He turned to the Rutiles. "What happened?"

They both shrugged. It was the right one who answered. "We were all just settling in when the pink blob made a portal into our ship. Next thing we knew, it was dragging Captain Lars out."

"You didn't stop him?"

"The Captain told us not to get in the way."

"Oh." Steven frowned, leaning over the railing. "Lars, we're gonna have to talk about your bad habit of putting yourself in danger when you don't need to!"

Lars released Lion's jaw and jumped back, the critter swinging a hefty paw to try and cuff him. "I'll talk about that as soon as  _you_  start talking about your self-blame issues!"

"You have me this time, Barriga!"

"Hey, not that I don't enjoy a bit of witty banter or anything-" Lion tackled him to the sands. A small cloud of yellow grit flew up. "But this is a really bad time for it!"

The boy took the quickest route down via hopping off the porch and floating to the ground. Lars rolled out from under Lion and put him in what best could be described as an amateurish headlock, grunting with effort. Lion looked quite bored.

"Lars, don't hurt my pet lion!" he cried.

"I'm not hurting him!" Lars snapped. "I'm incapacitating him. There's a difference, okay?" He grit his teeth as Lion attempted to fling him off. "You listen to me, furrball. I didn't _die_  and commit multiple galactic felonies just to get done in by some... some... some wannabe-Simba!"

That seemed to be the straw on the camel's back. Lion bucked him off, bending down to grab Lars by the back of his neckline. Lars let out a choking noise and dug his heels in, struggling to get free as he was pulled towards the waves. Steven put on a burst of speed to help, but it was for naught- Lion has chucked him into the ocean.

Lars came up spluttering and displeased. "What? Why? Who?"

"Awwww!" Steven gushed. "He was giving you a bath!"

He pushed his wet hair out of his face. "I call baloney!" he cried. "He didn't even start pulling me this way until you came out!"

The boy let out a little giggle as Lars spat some of the salty water out, helping him up once he was finished. "Well, whatever the case, I'm glad it turned out okay."

Lars squinted at Lion. "I'm on to you, fuzzy-wuzzie."

Lion snorted and padded away. True to Lars' word, the creature looked slightly disappointed in how things had gone, but that might have just been because the teenager hadn't floated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooh, things are heating up between the two pink floofs. More on this bit later, I promise.
> 
> Next Time, on Restless: Lars and Steven attend a horror movie session.
> 
> -Mandaree1


	12. Movie Night

"Dude," Sour Cream said. "Are you  _glowing_?"

Lars tried to hide his mildly phosphorescent skin, but that only really works with his hands, leaving his face and hair as bright and glowy as ever. "Uhh... yes?"

He slowly nodded. "That's sick, dude."

"It's kind of annoying," he confessed, his mouth running faster than his mind. "It's a bit hard to sneak into a Cosmic Jubilee when you're the only glittery guy in the room." Lars realized what he said a second too late and coughed into his fist, face turning an even brighter pink.

Lars didn't know whether to be  _more_  embarrassed or to feel better when Steven wrapped a bulky arm around his waist, guiding him to the floor of Sadie's room, effectively cutting that conversation short. Buck grabbed the top VHS tape and slid it into the player.  _Attack of the Living Blood Moles_  appeared starkly red against a white screen, bathing them all in momentary light.

"Oooh, I see relationship problems goin' on here," Jenny cut in over the movie, much to his displeasure, and waved her hand to him and Sadie, safely sitting apart from each other.

Thankfully for him, Buck threw popcorn at her. "Shhh. You're destroying the killer vibe."

"Ha!" Steven laughed, grinning ear to ear at the pun. "Killer."

Sadie leaned forward a little. "Steven, are you sure this is cool?"

"Oh, yeah." He gave her a thumbs up. "I've been un-grounded for ages now."

"I meant the imagery." On screen, a mole swallowed a character whole. Saw noises played in the background. "Isn't it a bit much for someone your age?"

Steven blinked at her, confused, then shrugged. "I've seen worse."

"Can confirm," Lars added, his hand inching towards the popcorn bowl against his will. "He's seen worse."

Buck reached over to poke the side of his skull. "You look like you have too, man."

He edged away. "Hey, how 'bout we not do this? Ever? At all? Because I'm really into that sort of thing, you know. I'm not one of those guys who are afraid of commitment."

Sadie coughed.

"...Okay, ouch, but also touche."

"You don't remember, do you?" Steven asked.

Lars let out a long sigh, defeated. "No, Steven. I don't remember. But I've heard about it plenty enough times."

They lapsed into a silence. It was broken by Sadie, her voice quiet and hesitant. "I didn't hear about it."

"Somehow, I think I preferred it when our main topic was whether Steven was old enough to watch moles eat people." Steven set a hand on his arm, but Lars jerked away instinctively. "I'm  _fine_. I just don't get why the first movie night I've had since coming back to Earth has to be about space. I left space  _in_  space, dangit."

"You hit a rock. That's not space-related."

Lars blew a raspberry. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

Buck leaned onto his arm. He thinks it's a comforting gesture, but it only makes Lars more tense. "Hey, dude, it's okay. You don't gotta talk about it if you don't wanna."

Steven pulled his legs to his chest and said nothing.

"I just don't get what all the fuss is about," Lars answered after a short pause, watching as a man was torn apart on the screen. "Or why it's centered on  _me_ , I guess. The others- they're super nice, and they deserve all the love in the universe. I'm just... here." His shoulders fell a little. "I'm here and really confused. That's about it."

"Boy," Jenny prompted. "Just because we missed you doesn't mean we're ignoring your friends."

"Yeah, man." Sour Cream nodded soulfully. "My lil' bro loves your buddies."

"We  _can_  do both, you know."

His eyes darted away. "Whatever, man. I gotta learn when to shut up."

Buck wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "I call group hug time."

"What? Wait, no-"

Too late. Steven had latched onto his midsection, prompting the other teens to do the same.  _Extremely_  flustered, Lars stared straight ahead, suddenly grateful he'd ditched Emerald in space somewhere. If she could see him now... it'd be the icing on the cake. He could never leave the ship again. "Thanks."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd hoped to do more with this, but I realized that it wasn't quite time for that yet lol. =)
> 
> Next time, on Restless: The cool kids come over to the ship to hang.
> 
> -Mandaree1


	13. Tug Tug

"Hey. What's up?"

Lion blinked at him.

"You, uh... you gonna try and dip me in the sea again?"

He chuffed. Lars took that as a negative.

It had been perhaps an hour since the cool kids had stopped by the Sun Incinerator, bringing snacks and sodas for the Gems to try. Lars had slipped outside once Padparadscha started hiccuping, and was soon joined by the large feline, who was being much more patient with him than he had been the last time. Or, at least, he had yet to drag him around, anyway.

A small bottle of root beer poked Lars in the side, making him jump with a high-pitched squeak. Steven smiled at it, but was kind enough not to comment, twisting the cap off his own bottle. "You're missing all the fun!"

"My bad," he grunted, displeased by the leftover cold sensation. "Speaking of; shouldn't you be in there?"

Steven shrugged a little. "I needed a break."

They fell into silence. Lion, emboldened by the boy's presence, gently grabbed his cape in his teeth and tugged. Lars plucked it away, scowling. "No! Bad fuzzball."

"You can't keep ignoring him forever," Steven said.

"Meh."

Steven took a swig. "You can't keep doing that either, you know."

"Doing what? Taking my cape back from your pet?"

"No." He shook his head, frowning slightly. "You can't keep running from them just because you feel awkward. That only makes things  _more_  awkward."

"Dude, seriously?" Lars breathed a sigh out his nose. "You're, like, eight."

"Fourteen."

"Fourteen. Whatever. Don't give me life advice when you can't even come up to my shoulders."

Steven laughed and gave a little hop, floating mid-air. "You were saying?"

He stuck his tongue out at him.

Lion growled and tugged on his cape once again, snorting some air out his nose. Lars got the feeling that was mostly retribution for making a face at the boy. "Alright, you know what? Fine." He threw his hands up. "I'll follow you. Why not? It's not the strangest thing I've done this month."

Steven's eyes grew very large. "Wait. Really?"

Lars didn't respond, climbing onto Lion's back when the creature turned and laid down. "You coming, or is this gonna be a solo trip?"

The decision didn't seem to be a very difficult one for the boy. Steven carefully set the soda down on the sand, then got on behind him, hooking his arms around the scrawny boy's midsection. "Okay, Lion. We're ready."

Lion took off at a sprint. There was a roar, and then they were gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is another short chapter, but the next one is gonna be more character-driven. =)
> 
> Next Time, on Restless: Lars and Steven have another island adventure
> 
> -Mandaree1


	14. Island Adventure 2; Electric Boogaloo

The sunlight was rapidly fading as they came out on Mask Island, casting unfriendly shadows across the land, but Lars and Steven both recognized its many geodes and bodies of water. The two boys were pretty acquainted with them at this point.

"Uh-oh," Lars said. He bent over and pressed his chin to Lion's forehead. "Okay, look. When I said I'd follow you, it was on the condition that you take me somewhere  _actually_  cool."

Lion chuffed and sat down, knocking Steven and Lars off. The smaller boy managed to hook Lars around the waist, keeping them from suffering an uncomfortable collision. It was during this crucial moment that the pink feline roared again and vanished from whence he came.

"Aww, come'on!" Lars cried, shaking a fist. "I thought we were cool now!"

Steven deposited the teen on the ground beside him, then sat up. "Whelp. I guess we're camping tonight."

"Seriously?" he asked, making a disgusted face. "This is literally the worst time for camping."

He shrugged. "The warp pad got crushed. We're stranded until Lion comes back." Steven attempted a reassuring smile. "If anything, Stevonnie getting stuck on that jungle moon really helped me brush up on my survival skills, so we should be good."

" _Great_."

"And there's always the Watermelon Steven tribe, but I like to leave them be."

Lars stared at him. "The  _what_?"

"Let's just say you're not the weirdest thing created by my bodily fluids." Steven paused. "Wait. That came out really weird."

He shook his head and stood up. "Okay. Gonna pretend you never just said that. Let's make a shelter."

* * *

Eventually, they found a bunch of sticks and leaves, building an extremely suspect tent out of them. It was as Lars was tightening the last vine that Steven piped up. "Wait. Weren't you there when the Watermelon Steven thing happened?"

"Yeah, but I thought they all died off."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"They didn't."

"I got that." Lars flopped down on the ground. Thunder rumbled in the distance. "You should try and get some sleep, Steven. I'll take first watch."

Steven patted his knee. "We don't need a watch. There's nothing too dangerous out here."

He shrugged, propping an arm on his upraised knee. "I don't feel like sleeping."

"Oh," Steven said. "Do you-"

"No, Steven," he answered wearily. "I don't  _need_  to sleep. At least, not as much as I used to."

"But you sleep the same as everyone else, don't you?"

"Well, it helps with stress. It's a habit." Lars shrugged again. "It's kind of weird to just sit around in the Sun Incinerator all night, and it'd be even weirder to hang out and watch people sleep, so I hit the hay and get up with the next disaster."

Steven pulled his legs close and hugged them. "Lars?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you miss being human?"

The teen glanced down at his hands. He'd always thought they looked better at night- the shade of pink was more to his tastes. He liked pastels; not so much neon. "Am I... not human now?"

"Maybe? No?" Steven grimaced, regretting his choice in words. "The only other creature I've seen this happen to is Lion, so I dunno if you're still human, or if you're a special species all together, or..."

"Hm." Lars glanced up, hearing the beginning rain droplets descend. "It's... complicated. I dunno if I  _can_  miss being much of anything. I was so lonely and angry all the time. I didn't like myself very much."

"Coming back to life doesn't change who you are, Lars," Steven said, voice soft.

"I know, I know. But people look at me different now. Even if they don't know about the stuff I've done, I can't exactly hide that I'm pink. I finally feel like I'm  _allowed_  to change, instead of like I  _have_  to. You know?" Lars looked at him out of the corner of his eye. His smile fell. "Steven?"

Steven jumped, hastening to wipe his eyes. "It's fine. Keep- keep going."

He touched his shoulder. "Dude, it's okay-"

"But it's  _not_  okay," he cut him off. "I tried to save you, and I got you killed. And now you've got all these  _responsibilities_  and _worries_  and it's- it's all my fault, Lars. I'm so sorry."

"Steven," Lars said. "I'm happy."

He blinked at him, wide-eyed. "Really?"

"I mean, I'm not happy with our current situation, no, but I'm happy overall. I'm glad I got to do this. I'm glad I'm finally learning who I am and who I want to be." He reached out to punch Steven's shoulder. "And, hey. Not every single bad thing that happens is your fault."

"Yeah?" Steven sniffled, blinking away some excess wetness. "I sure wish it felt that way."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eyy, I'm back on my old writing-shiz-out-in-the-middle-of-the-night sthick. It's currently past midnight where I'm at (when I wrote this, anyway), and I'm writing Lars-Steven feels.
> 
> Next Time, on Restless: pink teenager screams at a cloud
> 
> -Mandaree1


	15. Local Teen Screams at Cloud

Lars pressed heavily on the trunk of a half-rooted tree, shoving it over with some difficulty. "There. There's probably enough wood on this thing to make a fire for the night."

Steven was ripping twigs off, sticking his tongue out. "This would be a lot easier with my mom's sword."

"It'd be a lot easier if that fluffball was here to take us home," he snorted. Lars sat down on the trunk, popping an arm on an upraised knee. "Seriously. What does he have against me, anyway?"

"He doesn't! I don't think he does, anyway."

"Trust me, dude. He totally does. First he dunks me, and now he ditches me in the middle of nowhere!" He tapped a tune out on his knee. "I just can't figure out what I did to him. Did I step on his tail? Call his mane dorky? Give him the wrong kind of ice cream?"

"He likes Lion Lickers," Steven murmured. He perked up and grabbed Lars' arm, shaking it. "That's it! Lion Lickers!"

"I didn't feed him enough Lion Lickers?"

"No! I mean- I feed Lion those treats when he does a trick for me. Like, when he walks on water or makes a portal." The boy was yanking him up now. "Don't you get it, Lars? He's trying to train you!"

"Train me?" he echoed incredulously, brows knitting together. "Like a dog?"

"No, silly; like a cub!" Steven gave him a hard pat on the back. "He must want you to warp us home!"

Lars glanced up at the sky, as if expecting the answer to be written on the clouds. They were a dingy gray, preparing a storm of unknown proportions that Lars didn't want to get caught up in. Not to mention that, if there was even a small chance it was raining back in Beach City, he wanted to be around to calm any worries from his team. "It wouldn't hurt to give it a shot, I guess."

"Awesome! Now just... um... yell really loud?"

"Steven, I yell three-fourths of the things I say." Lars raised an eyebrow. "If that was gonna be how it works, I'd have made a million warps by now."

"Just _try_ , okay? And think of a destination when you do it."

"Okay, okay,  _fine_. I'll give it a try."

Lars stared up at a particularly suspect cloud, puffing his chest out in what he hoped passed for a non-laughable manner.  _Arriving at Beach City,_  he thought, trying to recall if that was how his mom's GPS sounded like, before screaming to the high heavens. By the time he was finished his face was even brighter pink than ever before, breaking off into a cough. Lars rubbed his throat. "Ow. You got a throat lozenge?"

Steven gave him a shove. "Try it again!"

"Dude, give it up. I can't do it."

"Did you think really hard?"

"Yes, Steven, I thought really hard."

"Was it someplace you  _really_  wanted to go?"

Lars paused. "Whattaya mean?"

Steven encircled both of his wrists, brow pinched. "Lars, is there anywhere in particular that you want to go?" he asked. "Someplace special?"

"Um..." His eyes darted off to the side. "Not really."

He scowled. "Lars, put your pride away for a sec, okay? If there's even the slightest chance whatever you're thinking will work, then we gotta take it." Steven's voice took on a desperate tinge. "I just got home, Lars. I don't wanna worry everyone again. Do you?"

"Fine!" He jolted back. "Just. Stand back."

Lars took a deep breath, shifting his boots on the squished dirt. He squeezed his eyes shut and screamed. There was a spasm, a flash of light behind his eyelids, and then a subtle breeze.

"You did it, Lars! You did it!"

He grabbed the boy's arm and, acting on an impulse, tucked and rolled through. Lars' stomach dropped as he flew what felt like nothing, landing solidly on his back. The brown coffee table underneath him crumbled at the blow, spilling mugs and coasters.

"Laramie?"

Lars cracked open an eyelid, wincing in pain. "Hey, mom. Dad. How's it hangin'?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit melodramatic and kind of anticlimactic, but I had fun. And I've been meaning to work toward updating this more.
> 
> Next Time, on Restless: The storm breaks over Beach City
> 
> -Mandaree1


	16. Bursting Open

"We're all gonna die!"

"Please, don't yell, ma'am," Connie pleaded, wincing. "We're not gonna die. It's just thunder."

Rhodonite fixed a wide-eyed look at the child. "How can I relax? The thunder's gonna kill us!"

"It's not going to-"

"And where's Captain Lars?" she went on, visibly shaken. "He's been gone for almost two days now. Ooh, the thunder got him, didn't it?"

"I... don't think it works that way," Connie reassured her. As if signaled by Rhodonite's worry, her phone started to chime. The girl pulled it out and hit answer, holding it to her ear. "Please, for the love of the stars, tell me you're on your way back."

"Sorry," Steven said, his voice muffled. "We just got back from Mask Island. Lars did his first portal!"

"Do I need to call Mr. Universe to pick you guys up? Or find Lion?"

"No, no. We're at Mr. and Mrs. Barriga's house."

Their safety assured, Connie breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay, cool. Is, uh, is everything okay? Did anything happen?"

Steven shook his head, brushing against the phone and making a muffled noise. "Not really. I did have some good emotional talks though, so there's that."

Connie's stomach twisted. "Oh. I see."

"Are you okay, Connie?"

"Yeah. I'm just so glad that you're doing okay," she said, though her heart wasn't in it. "I'll keep the crew company for the night. You try to get some sleep."

"Okay. If you're sure."

"I am."

"Good night, Connie."

"Mhm. You too." She ended the call, slipping the phone into her pocket. Moments like this made her miss her old flip phone; there was nothing quite so dramatic as roughly closing one of them, the satisfying clacking sound. "Lars and Steven are okay. They just got hung up on an island."

"Thank... the stars..." Fluorite said, clutching a hand to her chest. Thunder boomed again in the distance, but the news seemed to have placated their fears; even Rhodonite's, who merely glanced at the radar suspiciously before turning back to the conversation.

"I dunno who thought it would be funny to hang Captain Lars on this 'island' thing," the left Rutile added, "but they met their match!"

"They were definitely outwitted!" The right chirped.

Connie quietly made her way downstairs while they celebrated, trying to keep her conflicting emotions under control. She knew it was ridiculously petty to be jealous that Steven had another adventure without her- especially an unplanned one- but she'd hoped the others would start relying on her more. Hadn't she proven herself over and over again? Did they respect her at all? Or were they just playing knight with her, hoping she'd get bored and wander off one day?

The mere concept boiled her blood. Connie turned and punched the wall of the Sun Incinerator. To her surprise, it dented, leaving a sizable notch as she pulled back, hissing in agony. (She really had to stop doing these sorts of things. You'd think she'd learned from Jeff.)

"Oh, no! Your hand!" A tiny hand grabbed the swollen fingers, dragging them down. Padparadscha pressed a kiss to each one, as if she had healing spit of her own. "You shouldn't do that, friend Connie. It can hurt humans like yourself!"

Connie sighed. "Thanks, Paddie."

Padparadscha said nothing a moment. The Sapphire traced the dent with no small amount of surprise. "You're so strong," she murmured. "It's amazing!"

Her face grew red as she turned away. "Oh. Um. Thanks."

"Could you teach me to be that strong?"

"Me?" Connie replied. "Oh, no. I'm still a student. But Pearl could."

Padparadscha tilted her head to the side, smiling. "I think you could be an excellent teacher, friend Connie, if you gave yourself the chance."

"Oh," she said once again. Connie considered it a moment. "I mean... sure? I guess? I don't see why not, anyway."

It took the Sapphire a moment to catch up, after which she immediately flung her arms around Connie's midsection. "Oh, thank you, friend Connie! You're my hero!"

Connie returned the affection, unsure if she wanted to smile or blubber. "Thanks, Padparadscha. That... that means a lot to me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise we'll be heading back to Lars and Steven next chapter- I'm not gonna dangle the Barriga family and snatch it away- but I really wanted to do a Connie one! And I can never write enough Padparadscha!
> 
> Next Time, on Restless: Teen boy has to Emotion
> 
> -Mandaree1


	17. Pants on Fire

Lars lies his tuckus off. It's second nature. And, in his defense, he didn't think there was a person- alive, dead, or otherwise- who wouldn't be hard-pressed to when their father looks them in the eye, already crying, and asks if it hurt. Lars says no. Lars lies.

The typical questions follow after that. Martha pokes and prods at his skin for a solid two-three hours, baffled and amazed and more than a little horrified that her son has the look of bubblegum and the scar of an anime villain. Then they get into logistics- the Off Colors, his role in their escape (he keeps it brief- the Cosmic Jubilee and other such excursions are better-if-you-were-there-for-it stories anyway), and the fact that he may or may not have signed an entire family of equally technicolor space rocks into their name. Lars wouldn't go so far as to say he was getting used to it, but he was definitely _starting_ to, which was probably for the best; he's gonna be handing out explanations for the rest of his life.

Afterlife.

Middlelife.

Whatever.

Then comes the weirder aspect of it all, wherein Lars realized he was far more disconnected from humans than he thought he would be for such a short jaunt as a space pirate. He hadn't had a full, proper meal since coming back to Earth- snacks and sweets, sure, but not  _dinner_ \- and it soon became apparent his stomach didn't enjoy it as much as it once did. (Ironic, since he died hungry, but hey. Life is like that.) He downed a glass of water, then stopped and realized,  _wow, I just downed a glass of water, I haven't done that since I literally died. Huh. Nifty._

Eventually, they all disperse for the night. Lars all but tosses Steven into his spare room, not ready to deal with all  _that_  quite yet. Lars scavenges up the super glue from the kitchen drawer and gets to work fixing the table he kinda-sorta broke while nursing the bellyache. Rain pours just outside, leaving the night murky. He hoped the Gems weren't too worried- Lars had caught the tail-end of a conversation between Steven and Connie, but that was all. Nothing from the Crystal Gems. Nothing from  _his_  Gems.

The LED clock perched on the mantelpiece reads three when Martha hesitantly comes downstairs in her robe. Lars didn't look up from his work; why bother making it even more awkward?

"Laramie?"

"Hey, mom."

"Sorry," she said. "Lars."

Lars shrugged. It still niggled at him. It niggled bad, if he was being honest with himself. But it would be pretty stupid of him to literally rise up from the dead just to nitpick his mom on his name. "Couldn't sleep?"

"No," Martha admitted, crumpling to the couch. "I used to wait up until around this time. I'm in the habit."

"For what? I was in space. You knew that."

"I'm not sure. News, I guess. Most parents go through Empty Nest Syndrome." A rueful chuckle left her. "I just didn't expect it to happen like this."

Lars capped the glue bottle. "I'm sorry. For everything." He shuffled over and sat down next to her, fingers sticky. "I was a pretty bad son, huh?"

Martha didn't reply to that. Lars didn't know whether to feel grateful or not. Instead, she reached up to trace his scar once again, looking more exhausted than he'd ever seen her before.

"Are there more?" she asked dully.

"Absolutely no idea," he replied. "Not on my front, anyway. Mirrors aren't really a thing in space- not for hooligans like me- so I might have some on my back and just not know it." Lars allowed his mother to pull him closer, pressing their foreheads together. Neither of their breaths smelled all that appealing. "I, uh. I hit my back."

"Oh, Lars," Martha said. He could feel her fingers trembling. "It  _did_  hurt, didn't it?"

"Room for one more?" Dante broke into the moment with a sheepish smile as he came down after them.

Lars opened his free arm. "Always."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've never actually watched The New Lars, so I'm only really going off of what I saw in Dewey Wins asskdmcolcosocldcs. I told myself I'd start writing more of these drabbles- because I love doing them a lot, they're good practice- so I finally got off my butt and did this one.
> 
> Not sure what I'll be doing next, honestly! I've got ideas, but not sure which one I'll do. Suggestions are always welcome though!
> 
> -Mandaree1


	18. Rain

Steven sleeps for a bit. His pattern is heavy but short in nature; missions didn't really care much about the time, so he had become used to going about at odd hours. He watched the rain patter down the windows and remembered the long days the Gems had spent on that dinghy with him, looking for Lapis. He hadn't gotten much to eat, then. But he'd been alright.

In a way, he's always been surviving. Only the surviving was in tiny increments; long days, short nights, missing bits of food, going days without human interaction. They'd all fit into his life, but they weren't  _normal_.

(But neither is summoning a shield with space magic, and Steven is sure as sprinkles fond of his space magic shield.)

"I thought I heard things going bump in the night," Lars said as he opened and closed the door behind him. "Shouldn't you be asleep by now?"

"'M not tired." Steven stretched. "It's kind of humid in here."

"Hot air  _does_  tend to travel upwards." The teenager settled in next to him, propping his arms on the windowsill. His unnatural skin is so bright compared to what it used to be, lingering at the edges of Steven's vision. It's all he can do not to look to make sure he's not imagining it. "That's probably why they stuck me up here in the first place."

Steven's brow furrowed. "They stuck you up here?"

"Nah, I'm just joking at my own expense." Lars paused, staring out into the night. Neither of them could make out past the droplets. "I begged them for this room, actually. Spiders and all."

"They're nice people."

"I detect a but in there."

Steven shrugged, looking down at his hand. His magical, magical hand. "It's hard to talk to them, y'know? 'Cause I..." He swallowed. "I don't think there's a good ending to this sentence, now that I think about it."

Lars sighed, bedraggled. "I just had a long talk about this. They just got to sleep. I'm pretty sure they were crying, but I didn't have the guts in me to look." A warm hand touched Steven's shoulder, squeezing. "It's not your fault, anymore than it's mine. Actually, it's more mine than it is yours. I  _did_  jump on that robot."

"It's not like you could've thrown that rock. It was heavy."

A morbid snort erupted from his nose. "Man, look at us. I spent the whole trip to Homeworld bein' a jerk and causing problems. I must've wailed about being a wuss at least four times, and another four about how hungry I was. And no one really cared. You did, but it wasn't like there was anything you could do." Lars tapped his thumbs together, as if testing their durability. "Now I'm surrounded by people who can feed me or listen to me and not have to worry about dying, and I just can't talk to them. I don't have it in me."

"I know how you feel," Steven replied, voice almost a whisper.

"You have someone to talk to, right? Your moms?"

He looked at him, long and hard, as if trying to wrestle something with his mind. "It's... been hard, lately. So much has happened." His face crumpled- a crease of the brow, worry lines and exhaustion clinging to his eyelids. "Let's just say mom wasn't who I thought she was."

Lars leaned his slight weight on him. "Don't worry, dude. Everybody has that little epiphany. I used to think mine was the president of the world. Turns out she's just a really active member of the Beach City supper club."

"My mom was a Diamond."

"...Alright, you got me there." Lars tried to picture it. He found he couldn't. True, he had only seen the Diamonds once, and he'd been a little busy panicking to get a full catalog of them, but he did remember the sharp, unnatural planes to their forms, the sheer height to them. All his life he's heard stories and seen photos of the enigmatic Rose Quartz, and they were always full of smiles and that warm feeling that settled in your belly when you had a good stew. "Steven, your mom was the literal opposite of mine. She  _was_  president of the world. I'm almost jealous."

"Yeah," Steven said, a bittersweet twist to his lips. "Me too."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd just like to send this one out to my busted AC unit, for without it I wouldn't have been up at one-thirty writing Steven-Lars feels.
> 
> -Mandaree1


	19. Circling

Lars tried vehemently to get out of his mom pulling out the blue handknit sweater, but then she got that  _I just lived through my son being kidnapped and killed and I'm two seconds away from sobbing_  look on her face and Lars surrendered to itchy wool in June.

He managed to slip out around lunch, leaving Steven to be pampered. If there's one thing he's learned as of late, it's that Steven is mostly made of fluffy hair and half-suppressed mother issues these days and he needs it. Lars leaned back on the porch and tried to tell himself even some of this was normal.

A gentle smack to the back of the head effectively shattered that illusion. Lars bent down and retrieved the crumpled ball of paper, unfolding and reading ' _did it hurt?'_

"Ulgh," he groaned, balling it back up. "Everybody keeps asking me that!  _Of course_  it hurt, Ronaldo. I bashed my skull on a rock."

Ronaldo peered over the edge of the picket fence, crouched and ready to flee should things go south. "How was I supposed to know that? Our social circles don't overlap much!"

"We don't have social circles," he said as he hopped over the fence. "What're you doing here, anyway?"

"I heard Steven was here. I wanted to ask him about our new beach installations."

"Oh. Those guys are with me."

"Did you find them on your adventures?"

Lars laughed. "Nah, dude. We hid out in some rocks together for a bit. Then we got sick of being scared and stole a ship from a high-ranking official."

" _Dude_."

"I know, right?"

"That's superhero origin level backstory right there."

"Batdad ain't got squat on me." It was oddly freeing to joke around about nerd stuff. Like he was finally done with pretending after a long day of working customer service, relaxing into the covers for a nap. "Gotta be real with you, Ronaldo; those epic sagas you're thinking of? Never happened."

"Aw," he pouted. "Shame."

"Can I just say how  _weird_  it is that everyone is treating me like some angel except for you- the guy who's literally obsessed with this stuff?"

"Shoot, man. I might be jelly of your adventures, but you're still a jerk. Still Lars Barriga."

"Yeah," Lars said, liking the sound of that.  _Still Lars Barriga_. "I guess I am."

Ronaldo finally decided to stand. "Steven said I could ask him about his newest adventures today. I don't think he realized he'd be busy."

His good mood soured. "You can ask  _me_ about that."

"But-"

"Ronaldo, let's not make the  _child_ relive almost dying. That junk is traumatic."

"Word on the street is that you did die."

"Yeah, sure, whatever."

"What was it like?"

"I don't remember. Is that what you wanna hear?" Lars shrugged, scowling like he'd eaten something sour. "I remember rocks, and  _pain_ , and waking up with Steven cryin' over me, and I was  _pink_. Everyone keeps acting like I should be totally different, but I'm not. I got the gift of not remembering."

Ronaldo slid to the ground, back against the fence. "I dunno. You seem a little different to me."

"How d'ya figure?"

"You're talking to me."

"Oh."

"You still suck, though."

Lars sat down. "Thanks, dude."

"Are you gonna go on more adventures?" he asked hopefully, but Lars shook his head.

"All my crew ever wanted was Earth. Now they're here and we're all safe. I doubt they'll be interested in another deadly romp so soon." He paused. "Well, maybe the twins, but not Rhodonite."

"They seem pretty  _unsafe_  to me," Ronaldo sniffed. "That short one almost shot me in the knee! With an arrow! This isn't Skyrim, Lars."

Lars felt his mind go blank. "The short one did  _what_?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wrote this around one A.M. Gotta love Sleepy Me's writing!
> 
> Next Time, on Restless: I've never played Skyrim before, oh god if I got that reference wrong I'm in trouble.
> 
> -Mandaree1


	20. Lars Learns to Let Go

"Captain Lars."

Lars jumped, almost faceplanting into the sands below. "What the- oh, hey, Garnet." He followed the direction of her visor to Padparadscha and Connie. "This must look pretty sketchy, huh?"

Garnet said nothing.

"I heard from Ronaldo that Paddie was slinging arrows, but I didn't really believe him." Lars stared as Padparadscha strung her bow. "I'm still not sure I'm not hallucinating."

"You're not," she rumbled. "Amethyst had some spares laying around her bedroom. Pearl thought a long-distance weapon would be a good place to start while they work out her sight delay."

"Ah."

Garnet tilted her head in his direction. "They'd be happy to see you."

"Yeah, I know."

"You don't feel the same."

"I never said that!" Lars bristled, burying his fingers in the soft fluff in his sweater. "It's just... I dunno. I guess I forgot that stuff happens even when I'm not around to watch."

That seemed to strike a chord in Garnet, who awkwardly placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's never easy when people move on."

"Speaking from personal experience?"

"Somethin' like that."

Lars ran his hand over his face. "It's good. That they don't need me anymore."

"It is."

"But it still hurts."

"It does."

"When Steven brought me back, I decided to be someone  _worth_  being brought back," he said. "If I'm not Captain Lars, then I'm just... Lars. That's not worth much."

"All human lives have worth. No one has more right to life than anyone else." Garnet shrugged the idea off. "I was leader for a while, but we don't really go by leaders anymore- and, if we did, it'd probably go to Steven. I felt lost for some time 'cause of that. But not being leader doesn't make me any less Garnet, just like not being a Captain doesn't make you any less important."

"Okay, but even you have to admit that having wild space adventures is  _way_  cooler than what I've been doing since we landed."

That got the barest flicker of a smile. "I wouldn't argue that, no, but that's still pretty important. Life is random, cool stuff between long stretches of not-so-cool stuff."

Lars showed his hands into his pockets. "Alright, fine, you've convinced me. I still wish we could've at least gone out with a boom or something."

"We all do." Garnet adjusted her shades. "Who knows; maybe you will."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been hype to write Garnet-Lars bonding lol. They've both had some interesting leadership scenarios going on.
> 
> Next Time, on Restless: Lars Goes Out on a Boom
> 
> -Mandaree1


	21. Boom!

The beach was full of Gems when Lars stepped out of the Sun Incinerator, smuggling a bulky diamond-shaped item under his cape. Fluorite was sprawled across the sands, her spindly limbs dragging halfway across the beach. Amethyst was on one of her many bulbs, snoring loud enough to be mistaken for a semi. A little ways off was Rhodonite and Pearl, the duo chatting animatedly about the coarseness of sand as they fiddled with their hair. Ru and Til were playfighting with Garnet, who was smiling so wide Lars was certain she was plotting a tickle-fest.

Lars sucked in a deep breath. He wondered if he could manage to make it past without having to say a word. Then a pointy pink nose jabbed him between the shoulder blades, almost sending him to the ground in what would've been an embarrassing fall, and there's no real coming back from that.

"Hi, Captain Lars!" Padparadscha called, a second too late. Steven was strumming his ukulele beside her. "I predict you're going on a trip!"

Lars let out an awkward chuckle, patting Lion's head. "Ah, not really. Just gonna take fido over here for a walk."

"Be back soon," Rhodonite said, sounding concerned. "We wouldn't want another repeat of the island."

He sent her some finger guns and backed away. Lion followed with a flat expression, clearly unamused by his antics. Lars got around the side of the temple and leaned against it with a sigh of relief.

Lion grunted at him.

"Lay off, Chewbacca," he grumbled. Lars patted at his nonexistent pockets, eventually retrieving a phone from within. He scrolled down his recent received calls and hit send. It rang five times before clicking. "Hey, Connie. You know that thing about you feeling insecure and underappreciated?"

"What the-" A loud thudding noise echoed in his ears as Connie fumbled her phone. "Lars, I am _at school_."

"Oh, yeah. I forgot normal people did that," he mused.

"Did you seriously call me to spit on my insecurities?"

"Absolutely not. I would do that in person," Lars says, which is a complete lie, simply because she could knock him out with one solid punch. "Listen, you got a second? I have a bit of an issue."

"I'm thirteen."

"Not those kinds of issues," the captain retorted. He pulled the object out from behind his back, tucking the cell phone between his chin and shoulder as he gave it a good twist. It split, showing off a holographic screen covered in symbols. "I think I got a callout post in Gem."

"You can read Gem?"

"Not in the slightest. But I got really bored on the Incinerator, so I got went looking around and found some records. I know what Emerald's signature looks like." Lars enhanced the bottom, showing off a line of green text. "Lion brought this fancy doohickey to me, so Emerald probably gave it to him."

"Makes sense. You're both bright pink and obnoxious," Connie said. "But Lion can't warp far off-planet."

"So I've heard. It's a bit of a concern." Lars twisted it shut, scowling. "I know we're not that close, but I also know you're pretty good with a sword. Wanna be my backup?" He paused. "After school, I mean."

Connie let out a chuckle. "Okay, real talk? I'm like ten minutes away. Less than that if you send Lion."

"Did you cut school for me?"

"I cut school to fight with a big sword in _space_."

"Touché," he admitted. "See ya in ten, Maheswaran."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey I'm back! 
> 
> Seeing how canon has thoroughly tromped this little idea (which is fine by me- that new special was amazing!), I figure it's time to bring it to an end. I was out of ideas too, but I wanted to end this in a somewhat satisfying way, so we're gonna make a three-parter!
> 
> Next time, on Restless: Lars fistfights a Gem in the void.
> 
> -Mandaree1

**Author's Note:**

> Heyo! This is gonna be on a drabble-type basis, methinks. Gives it a nice, loose feel. None of this will ever be canon, but that's never stopped me before!
> 
> Next time, on Restless: Lars does paperwork.
> 
> -Mandaree1


End file.
